Category Archives: Uncategorized
Guess who moved to Coldwell Banker?
It’s nothing new in our business… Agents switch companies all of the time. But it is a rare event when a large amount of them move to a single firm in such a short period of time! In the past 12 months almost 100 (94 to be exact) licensed real estate agents left their previous brokerages and affiliated with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage’s new North Orange County branch. What makes this so hard to believe and frankly so astonishing, is that so many of these great agents left the companies they were at for very many years. And frankly, the companies they left were all great companies too. So, what happened? Why did so many people move to Coldwell Banker in such a short period? Well, there’s been a lot of speculation as to the answers to these questions. I won’t list all of the reasons that I’ve heard floating around out there, but I will answer the question and dispel any and all rumors or speculation.
After years of just a couple of companies dominating the North Orange County market place and trading agents back and forth, the need for another full service but very different option became clear. And when Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage announced their expansion and return to Yorba Linda, the decision became very easy for many. The single largest and #1 real estate firm in the US with over 700 offices brought an offering that met and far exceeded the needs of the customer and the agents with a well known brand combined with an established luxury component, powerful mix of readily available and extensive marketing at the branch level and beyond, advertising, education, financial stability, and overall resources. It was simple to many… A shift from their company to CBRB and they suddenly have MORE to offer their customers in so many tangible ways. Add to everything tangible that was astonishing, the intangible yet immensely important components of leadership, culture, reputation, ethics, and environment were icing on the cake. To quote Graeme Raid and Jacquie Robinson who said it so perfectly “We frankly didn’t know what we didn’t know until we made the move. And it just keeps getting better!”. Quotes like this have become a common theme amongst those who have affiliated with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage.
By now you may be curious “Who made the switch to Coldwell Banker?”, so for the answer to that question and to avoid typing a very long list, just click this link to view our office roster of over 120 agents… I think you’ll be surprised at many of the names on the list (and there’s many more to come); http://www.californiamoves.com/Associate/AgentTeamSearchResults.aspx?StateID=9&RegionID=-1&CityID=43103&OfficeID=449&IsSatelliteOffice=False&OfficeName=Yorba%20Linda&IsFromOfficeSrch=True&SortColumn=LastName
With just 31 days left in 2014, it’s the perfect time to explore the opportunities at Coldwell Banker and find out what you’ve been missing out on all of these years! You really do owe it to yourself. It certainly can’t hurt!
For more information visit http://www.WhyCB.com and read all about this amazing company!
For a confidential interview, just email Brad.Pearson@camoves.com or Call/TXT 714-782-2723
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Brad
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Come visit us:
21580 Yorba Linda Blvd.
Yorba Linda CA. 92887
The 6 reasons homes fail to sell in today’s market!
Like the old saying goes; “if all you have is a hammer, then everything looks like a nail”, for many real estate agents, their solution to every single homes failure to sell is to “reduce the PRICE”. Some agents work expired listings and actually do nothing more than over focus on getting a price reduction rather than actually analyzing the overall marketing efforts and other factors that could have caused the failure. Unfortunately many home sellers don’t interview enough agents and/or select their agent based on commission, price opinion, or because they got a notepad left on their doorstep and after a month or two for sale the agent begins to send emails recommending price reductions. While certainly in some cases price is the issue, until the 5 other items are examined and executed on thoroughly it is absolutely premature to ask a seller to reduce their price in many cases. I’ve said this a million times if I’ve said it once, asking a home owner to reduce their price should be taken very seriously and treated like a doctor prescribing surgery to a patient. Just as a good doctor would not prescribe surgery to a patient without exhausting all other options, a good real estate agent should not recommend a price reduction unless all other options have been exhausted and of course as long as the home is priced fairly amongst the competition and comparables in the area.
Here are the 6 primary reasons a home fails to sell in today’s market:
1. EXPOSURE – Lack of exposure, negative exposure, over exposure, bad marketing, MLS misuse.
(While we all know that Exposure Creates Demand and Demand Drives Price, it also drives the sale! Not all agents and companies can provide adequate exposure. In past markets with low inventory levels and a high number of distressed properties on the market many companies and agents got by without much marketing and advertising. In today’s market, cutting corners can cost a seller money and cause some agents to over focus on price since their ability to market and advertise adequately is limited. When a home owner interviews a Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Realtor they are often blown away by the amount of advertising and marketing we do for every listing in comparison to some competitors.)
2. TERMS – Impossible or difficult to meet terms can dramatically reduce the buyer pool. Ex. Cash only, Conventional only, difficult to finance properties, no contingent buyers, and even overly paranoid agents who use the agent remarks in the MLS to make it very difficult for buyers to submit offers. Ex. Unreasonably/unnecessarily large deposit required, unnecessary cross qualifications, other terms and restrictions listed unnecessarily in MLS.
(Always as sellers if they are open to carrying a first or second loan for a buyer, always fully explain the advantages and disadvantages of offering the property to contingent buyers as many sellers may not mind the risk and extra time in exchange for a higher sales price. Remember, it never hurts to get more offers and the seller can always counter terms during the negotiation process!)
3. DESIRABILITY – i.e. Condition, Location, Functionality, etc.
(Some of these you can control and improve and others you cannot, but addressing this is critical. Improving the condition of a home is something fairly easy to do if the seller can afford it, but there’s little that can be done about location of course.)
4. ACCESSIBILITY – Restrictive showing instructions, no lockbox, limiting showing hours, appointment only, etc.
(With thousands of homes on the market, many agents are looking to make their jobs easier and difficulty in showing will cause a reduction in showings, leading to fewer potential buyer opportunities. Unfortunately this is a reality, especially in higher inventory markets.)
5. COMMISSION – An uncompetitive co-op broker/buyers agent commission offering can potentially limit showings. While it may not be right or fair, let’s be honest here… If there are 3 similar homes on the market and one is offering 4%, another is offering 3%, and the other is offering 2%, which one do you think the buyers agent is going to go out of their way to show and sell? In most cases, a buyers agent has shown 20, 30+ homes over several months in some cases, it’s impossible to believe that they aren’t at least taking a passing glance at the commission being offered on the homes they are showing.
6. PRICE – A home should be priced very carefully and thoughtfully within a reasonable range of closed, pending, and active listing comparables while taking into consideration the current market factors, condition of the property, location, amenities, and many other factors. The best agents use very many factors as well as their depth of experience to properly recommend the right asking price for the property. If a home is not selling after adequate time on the market, and after the above 5 other items have been thoroughly executed, then it is reasonable to determine that price is the issue.
So whether listing a home for the first time or prospecting expired listings, being able to articulate the importance of 
these 6 items while providing a clear and concise analysis of each one along with a comprehensive plan to execute on the plan with guarantee success while ensuring that your seller achieves top dollar for their home.
As a Coldwell Banker agent, you have the most extensive marketing and advertising and will have no problem showcasing your ability to reach more potential buyers than any other firm. From our View Magazine with 1.2 million in distribution per month, to our massive online exposure, you can easily show a prospect that they have the best possible chance at achieving their price. Using the list above will enable you to have a professional discussion with your clients that will allow them to make solid financial decisions based on facts rather than opinions and they will know that if you are having a price reduction conversation with them, that you are doing so only after exhausting all other efforts.
If you are not with Coldwell Banker and you feel like your current firm has limited tools to enable you to adequately expose your listings to the market place, then it may be time to explore the opportunities at Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage!
As always, it is my goal to help all agents grow and achieve success in Real Estate. If you are not already a Coldwell Banker independent sales associate, and would like to explore all that we have to offer our agents and our customers, please give me a call or email at 714-782-2723 or Brad.Pearson@camoves.com. Or visit http://www.WhyCB.com
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Brad
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Come check out our new 10,000 square foot flagship office in Yorba Linda!
21580 Yorba Linda Blvd. Yorba Linda CA. 92887 (714) 832-0029
The APP everyone should have and use!
This APP is by far one of my favorites! So many of us spend our days either heading to an appointment or waiting for someone to arrive to an appointment. I’ve finally realized that the periodic late arrival is inevitable no matter how much one plans out their day. I’ve heard it a million times from people “if they just would have called and said they were running behind, I would have understood”. One of the most frustrating scenarios is when your appointment shows up 10 minutes late without even making a call or sending an apologetic text. Then there’s the old “I’m 5 minutes away” text and either they have no concept of time, or they were stretching the truth. This APP solves the “I’m on my way” problem with some incredible technology. It’s called Glympse and it’s free! So there’s no reason not to at least try it.
Here’s what it does… You can very simply and in seconds, send a “Glympse” text with a link from your smartphone that will allow the recipient to actually see you on a map driving, riding, walking ,etc. in real time, with the actual speed you
Click to visit the Glympse website!
are traveling. You can set the amount of time that the link you sent will show your location, and when that time runs out, they can no longer see you. You can even input the destination and it will show your estimated time of arrival.
Just imagine that you are on your way to a listing appointment and you send a Glympse to your client when you are on your way… Now they can know the exact moment you arrive! How about the good ole “I’ll let you know when I’m on my way”… Now just send them a Glympse and they can even check in to see how far away you are and eta. Running a few minutes behind because of traffic… Send a Glympse so they can see where you are and not have to ask you every few minutes.
Most importantly, this APP can help you stay safe by letting those waiting for you that you are on the road and rather than text or call to ask you where you are, they can just tap the link and view you on the map.
I’ve been using this APP more and more lately and almost everyone I’ve sent a Glypmse to have been very appreciative as well as impressed with the technology. I am confident that you will get the same results if you use this great tool.
iPhone users – Click here to go directly to iTunes to download Glympse: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/glympse-share-location-friends/id330316698?mt=8
Android users – Click here to go directly to Google Play to download Glympse: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.glympse.android.glympse&hl=en
Spread the word and let’s get everyone using this great app and make all of our lives easier!
As always, it is my pleasure to bring strategies and ideas to help you grow your business and become more efficient while providing great service to your clients! Having taught hundreds of Realtors how to use technology to dramatically improve the level of personal service to their customers while saving time, energy and money, I am always open to answering questions and sharing with those interested in collaborating. Please don’t hesitate to share any great APPS that you have found as well!
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Brad
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One of the nicest things you can ever do for a home buyer that will build your business too!!!
Escrow is closed and your buyer is moved into their new home! What an accomplishment in a market where so many transactions are wrought with challenges. We are so happy to have helped our buyers get their home, and often feel like taking a bow in front of them after spending 30 to 45 days or more at maximum stress level working through one obstacle after the other to ensure a successful closing. Even in the “easy” transactions that go perfectly, we are so shocked and surprised sometimes that we sigh in relief at the closing and can’t wait to hand over the keys to the buyers and fulfill their dream of owning this home. If you’re a Coldwell Banker agent, there’s no doubt that you set them up with our Concierge Service and covered every base to make their move as smooth as possible. But there’s one thing that we rarely address aside from our normal conversations with our buyers during a transaction… The almost immediate lonely feeling of being out of place in new surroundings. From going from knowing all of their neighbors, to waving uncomfortably at their new neighbors they’ve never met on the way to work in the morning…they’re starting all over.
In this blog post, I will share a way that WE as Realtors can help our buyers feel more welcome in their new neighborhood, bring people together, and make a strong impact on them that they will never forget. By doing this simple and kind thing, you will strengthen your relationship with your buyers, as well as make a phenomenal impression on the immediate neighbors and very likely get more business from that neighborhood and more REFERRALS from your buyers.
For about $2-$5 you buy a large “Welcome to the Neighborhood” card (here’s a link to some
Click to see samples and buy
http://www.greetingcarduniverse.com/welcome-to-the-neighborhood-neighbourhood-cards/houses-welcome-to-the-neighborhood-583399?utm_source=googlebase&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google_base&campaign=googleshopping&gclid=CLzStvbWvMACFSpp7AodoTEA9Q). Then simply go and knock the doors of the surrounding neighbors and ask them if they would like to write a short welcome message to your clients. NO ONE will say no, and most will be so appreciative of the proactive and thoughtful gesture you are making to gather these welcome messages. I’ve also suggested carrying extra cards with stamped envelopes for those neighbors who are not home with a note from you and your business card attached. If someone says they don’t have time, hand them an addressed and stamped card and envelope for them to take and write their message and drop in the mail later. How many should you do? My suggestion is to at the very least, try to get the immediate 10 homes across the street, and the 5 on each side of their home, but the more the better of course! Another great touch is to write a letter of introduction to your clients, with their permission of course. Here’s a great article that you could even use as a handout with the introduction letter: http://www.wikihow.com/Welcome-New-Neighbors
I can assure you that if you begin doing this for every buyer on every transaction you close, you will NOT have to even ASK the neighbors to list with you, or ask your buyer for referrals. YOU will have their business! Every agent that I’ve talked to that has done this has stories about their buyers literally getting emotional with sometimes tears of happiness when they read the notes from the neighbors. Another interesting thing happens very often too. Some of the neighbors are inspired by your gesture and actually go introduce themselves to the new buyers and a new relationship is sparked. All because of what YOU did.
Of course, if you are the type of person that likes to take things to a higher level, you can even host a “Let’s welcome our new neighbors!” party at the local home owners association, a local restaurant, or even another neighbors house.
Another great thing to do is to go visit all of the closest local businesses, restaurants, etc. and talk to the owner or manager, and ask them if they would like to sign the welcome card. You’ll find that many of them will even offer small gift cards & coupons that you could include when you deliver the finished card.
As always, I enjoy sharing strategies and ideas on ways to grow your business and improve the level of service we all provide to our clients. Of course, this is one of many unique strategies I share with the agents I work with and coach on a regular basis, and I am always open to sharing how a move to Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage can help you dramatically grow your business! For more information please don’t hesitate to call, text, or email me at 714-782-2723 or Brad.Pearson@camoves.com .
To your continued success,
Brad
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It’s just the right thing to do…. But why isn’t everyone doing it?
We all know how stressful moving can be. The strain put on the human mind during the move from one home to another is immense. Just Google “life’s most stressful events” and you’ll find pages and pages where moving is in the top 5. Healthstatus.com lists “moving” number 3 following death of a loved one and divorce, and is ahead of major illness, and job loss. (http://www.healthstatus.com/health_blog/depression-stress-anxiety/top-5-stressful-situations) Anyone who has moved recently can easily relate. Just the thought of moving sends shivers up my spine, and I’m clearly not alone. From the emotional stress of leaving a place that was so personal and full of memories, to the overall logistics of the actual move process, the nightmare of planning out the move, interviewing moving companies, packing up, and then worrying about everything making it to the destination in tack, and then the weeks and even months of unpacking. It never fails that the one thing you need too is always the last thing to get unpacked.
What is so surprising to me, after 21 years in the Real Estate business, is that so little attention is paid to helping our clients with the actual move process. Of course we all talk about it with our clients, but very few companies actually offer any real support and assistance with the process. As a matter of fact, short of making a referral to a moving company that may offer a discount, most companies and agents do not offer much more than that. So here we are, selling homes for people and for the most part, each agent is on their own to decide how much, if any, support they will offer. Now I realize that there are some agents out there that likely offer more than others, but those would certainly be the exception rather than the norm.
Maybe it’s because of how much I loathe moving, but within a week of joining Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, I was barraged with hundreds of incredible tools for Realtors, and their clients, but one stood out to me more than the others. Several of the great folks who were helping me get oriented with the company were a little surprised at how I kept going back to this one client offering. It was the client Concierge Services department within the company and website ConciergeService.com. The website alone is incredible in it’s easy design and all of it’s offerings, but what really impressed me the most was that this is an actual department within the corporate office of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage staffed by great people dedicated to assisting our clients with the many aspects of the move process, as well as so many other benefits. The fact that our clients can call this department by phone and talk to an actual move specialist was astounding. I just kept thinking that this is a huge reason why our firm is so successful, why our agents have such a huge referral base, and why we are #1 in corporate relocation in the US. The weight that this free service takes off of our clients during such a stressful time in their lives is something that we take seriously and actually invest large financial resources to make available as well as constantly improve upon. Yet, it is one of the things we talk about the least. I had the great opportunity to meet Pete Nordstrom several years ago, yes, the Nordstrom departments stores family member, and he said something that I had never thought about. He made a great point that Nordstrom NEVER makes a big deal about their service. It’s not in their tagline, or commercials even. They just “provide great service” and their customers spread that word. Clearly their strategy has worked! I have to liken this to how CBRB has positioned this great Concierge Service. Aside from this blog post, you won’t see it in our commercials, or all over our ads, it’s just an offering that is available along with so many others to make the experience of selling or buying a home a great one. And our statistics and rankings as the Number 1 residential real estate company in America confirms that our clients are happy and spreading the word. We weren’t just Number 1 last year, but for the last 17 years consecutively. While so many great firms are out there, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage is the ONLY firm to offer a service like this.
Click image to visit our exclusive Concierge Service website
Below are some quotes from just a few of our clients that confirm that it’s more than enough for us to just let our clients spread the word on their experience;
“I am a homeowner and wanted to tell you how much I appreciate Concierge and what a help it has been to me. We are just getting started on a bathroom remodel. What a wonderful help and quite a nice perk from Coldwell Banker to have this type of a thing. I do appreciate how helpful everyone has been!” — J. Tschetter, Satisfied Customer
“Thank you so much for your help. It is especially difficult organizing a complex move from Australia, and I am appreciative of any advice and assistance that you can provide. Again, I very much appreciate your guidance and assistance in organizing this move. It was a great relief to learn of this service provided to Coldwell Banker clients.” — K. Palghat, Satisfied Customer
“I genuinely want to thank you and Coldwell Banker Concierge for your help and for the outstanding list of companies you recommend to new homeowners.” — J. Mandel, Satisfied Customer
“The vendor was very flexible and professional, working with me to give me exactly what I wanted for the best price possible. They worked really hard to get the work done on the schedule I wanted – good job! It looks great.” — F. Reingold, Sherman Oaks, Satisfied Customer
“Your service is exceptionally unique and good. We appreciate it very much and our confidence in Coldwell Banker is #1.” — D. Schneider, Satisfied Customer
“It was a mammoth move and the mover did a very good job! The mover paid attention to detail and close follow ups with supervisors.” — M. Firestone, Satisfied Customer
Just imagine how those customers felt and how different their experience could have been without such a great service!
If you would like more information on this great free service, just visit http://www.ConciergeService.com. If you are a Realtor and interested in learning more about the offerings at Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, don’t hesitate to call/text or email me at 714-782-2723 or Brad.Pearson@camoves.com.
Thank you for visiting my blog and check out the video below!
Brad
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuecpPYZ–Q&sns=em
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Win with Expired Listings! by Brad Pearson
It’s 8 in the morning and you start your day (hopefully) by running that days expired listings. You review each listing and
after years of being taught that if a home failed to sell, “it must be the price” so you start to figure out how big of a price reduction is needed to make each listing salable, subject to seeing the home of course. Then you start making your calls or visits to set appointments to get the opportunity to try and get the listing at lower price so you can sell it. In this blog post I will offer you a much better strategy to get these listings and actually show the seller that YOU are the best choice for them to provide the opportunity to sell their home.
Let’s start with a addressing the elephant in the room… PRICE! The LAST thing these sellers want to hear is that they need to list with YOU and drop the PRICE. If PRICE was the only reason their home failed to sell, then they really don’t need to change agents, they just need to change the PRICE. So how much sense does it make to tell a seller that you’re the best agent with the best company, best marketing, advertising, etc. but they still need to drop their price $25,000? The whole scenario begs the question “If you’re so great, and we should list with you, then why are you telling us to drop our price?” This is why any agent worth their value propositions, should be willing to take that listing and at the least give everything they’ve got to try and accomplish what the other agent couldn’t do before even discussing price. A simple comparison to going right after price would be if you went to the doctor with a stomach pain and the immediate diagnosis is surgery. Any good doctor would try everything they could before deciding that surgery is the answer. In the same way, we as Realtors, should do anything we can to make absolutely sure that when we recommend a price reduction that we’ve exhausted all other options because to a homeowner, a price reduction is major surgery to them.
Let me suggest a simple, yet powerful strategy:
1. Run the full printouts and examine all of the data, photos, accessibility, location, commission, unnecessary hoops to jump through in agents remarks, etc. and look for reasons, other than price, that could have contributed to the home not selling.
2. Once you’ve discovered the areas that YOU could and would do BETTER, then go to the sellers home and share this with them with the following script;
“Mr. & Mrs. Seller, I’ve reviewed your previous multiple listing information and have determined that with some changes and improvements to the marketing of your home and the exposure that my firm and I can provide, that I may be able to get your home sold. What I can assure you is that IF I cannot sell your home in the next 30-45 days, then we will be able to accurately make the determination that price is the issue. But only after I do everything I can to properly expose your home to the market would I even consider suggesting a price reduction. I’d love the opportunity to sit down with you and show you everything that I and my firm do differently to get top dollar for our listings.”
With this approach it completely supports your entire listing presentation and value propositions. It also provides with the seller a solid and legitimate reason to list with you over re-listing with the previous agent who was likely pushing for a price reduction for weeks before the expiration.
Now it’s important that you actually can improve the marketing and offer improved exposure and presentation to the market! Here at Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage we have incredibly powerful tools as well as an in house marketing expert that you can utilize to actually demonstrate to your prospect that you CAN and WILL dramatically 
increase the advertising and marketing for the home when they list with you. Tools like the View Magazine with 1.2 million copies distributed each month, the View China for international exposure, our exclusive FAB+ program, our powerful and free Social Made Simple social media program, professional photography, staging, Quickview internal exposure program, YouTube On Location exposure, etc. etc. etc. will set you apart from every agent in your marketplace and instill confidence in your seller that you have what it takes to drive traffic to their home.
As always, I am here to offer ideas, strategies, and coaching to help you grow your business. For more information on Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage please feel free to email/text/call Brad.Pearson@camoves.com or 714-782-2723.
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Brad
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Here we come! July 25th Coldwell Banker Yorba Linda office update!
About 9 months ago, there was no shortage of those who said it “couldn’t be done”. They said “the chances of opening a new office in Yorba Linda amongst some formidable intrenched competitors was a long shot”. And to be honest, and to make a little public confession, there was a little part of me that believed them at first. I mean, let’s be honest, who doesn’t have some doubt when tasked with a huge undertaking, risk, and a huge audience of people that plan to work hard to ensure your failure, called competitors. With that said, I am incredibly thankful for those who not only said “it CAN be done and we CAN do it”, but especially for those who said “we are with you!” I am also thankful for the foresight of such a great company to entrust me to lead this great undertaking and provide us all an amazingly professional and respectful environment that allows for everyone to grow and enjoy their career in real estate. And I would be remiss not to mention my incredibly supportive family who have had to endure many early mornings and late nights to get to this point.
So where are we now? With tremendous pleasure, I can say that we are now at 83 Independent Sales Associates, with many more
great people affiliating each week that goes by. We have consistently had “record months” so many times that the bar just keeps getting higher and higher. And the month of July is another one of those record months! This amazing group of agents already have 50 sales with over $30,000,000 in volume and are on track to potentially pass 60 new sales and scare $40,000,000 for the month of July! To put this in perspective, this represents over $1,000,000 in projected Gross Closed Commissions that will be paid to the Independent Sales Associates in one month! Now for a group that is working out of two separate, temporary facilities, and for all intent and purposes, “camping out” until the new Yorba Linda flagship office is opened, this success speaks to their skill, talent, and tremendous focus. While many in the real estate business right now are lamenting that it is “slow”, we are experiencing quite the opposite.
The theme for this weeks video that I’m posting below is “Here we come!”. While we are still in the rear view mirror of several of our competitors, our front license plate is becoming very clear as you’ll see in this fun video!
If you are not yet with our great firm and would like to find out why so many great people have affiliated with us over the past 9 months, then please feel free to email or call/txt me at Brad.Pearson@camoves.com or (714) 782-2723.
Thanks for following the progress!
Brad
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Video:
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I hear it all the time… “I don’t care about Facebook, I don’t have time to write a blog, Twitter is a waste of time, Instagram is for kids, Social Media is a fad, Social Media isn’t my thing, I’m too busy to do Facebook, I can’t figure it out, etc. etc.” I even hear from agents interviewing with me, that some of my competitors are adamant that they not only do not “do social media” but that they don’t “believe in it” and in some cases they even elaborate extensively on their reasons why. In this blog post, I want to address the whole social media allergy that appears to exist in the Real Estate business in hopes to bring some common sense to the importance and necessity of this incredibly powerful medium.
First and foremost, I want to make the most direct and impossible to argue with statement with regard to the reason to 
utilize social media in your business….. It has NOTHING to do what you think, feel, or believe about it… It simply and only matters what your CLIENTS think about it. I hope that makes sense. My simple point is that whether you are using social media or not, the first thing that you must accept is that your clients ARE. The decision NOT to participate in the social media revolution is the same as deciding that you do not wish to be where your clients are. It takes an immense amount of either ignorance or arrogance to believe that you can grow a business efficiently without the use of social media nowadays. It only takes a minute to Google “social media stats” to figure out that the quickest and most efficiently effective way to connect with large amounts of people at a very low or NO cost, is via the many different social media sites. Whether we like it or not, if we want to be “relevant” to a large segment of our own customer base we need to be where they are. Especially in the Real Estate business!
So, here’s the breakdown of my heading to this post and why I’m such a believer… Only 350 subscribers to this blog, the blog auto posts to over 1000 of my LinkedIn members, and to 150+ twitter followers, Google+, my 1000+ Facebook friends, I have two business Facebook pages that I can repost this to and share with up to another 2100+ people, then I can choose to “Boost” the post and specifically target thousands more people by location and/or interests. So at a bare minimum, if I do nothing but simply hit “Publish” I’m connecting to several thousand people in my sphere of influence and beyond. By writing one post per week on average, I’m staying top of mind to a lot of people on a very consistent basis with solid content, information, updates, ideas, news, etc. And it doesn’t cost me a dime! As a cool bonus, I can even track my visits, views, and overall traffic to this post so I know how many people took the time to read it. I can also see where they came from, i.e. email, facebook, twitter, google, etc. and what geographic area their IP address is where they accessed the blog. Oh, and I can also see if they clicked via a computer or a mobile device!
Click to download 80/20 business plan!
With all of that said, I don’t want anyone to read this and think that they should run out and spend all of their time on Facebook and Twitter. As I describe in my business plan(available at http://www.BradPearsonOnline.com), I believe that a healthy business should have a solid plan that consists of 80% of business development strategies to be conducted OFFLINE, and 20% to be geared towards a solid and consistent ONLINE strategy. The better the online strategy, the more effective your offline strategy will be.
Here’s some ideas on how to combine offline and online business development:
-Connect with your entire Sphere of Influence and Past Client list on Facebook and Twitter. Actively interact with them and their posts. Post relevant, fun, interesting posts, and always present the best “YOU” online. Not too personal, but not too much business either. Use common sense. You can learn so much about your sphere on social media just by paying a little attention. Nothings better than already knowing so much about your friends and clients and having a warm opening the next time you meet offline!
-Connect on LinkedIn with all of your clients, past clients, prospects, SOI, etc. This is a great place to share each others businesses and support those who support you.
-Gain followers on Twitter by first following those with similar interests, those you know, meet, etc.
-Create a blog on Real Estate and invite all of your clients, past clients, prospects, SOI, etc. to subscribe. Then take 30 minutes per week to write an informative post on the market, and other topics related to Real Estate. Promote your blog on other Social Media as well as all offline marketing.
-Create a YouTube channel and post videos on Real Estate, your listings, marketing, etc. and promote on all other media offline and online.
-Create an Instagram account and post fun pictures of your Real Estate activities, your marketing, listings, etc. Connect with other social media so posts go elsewhere. Add the Instagram logo to your marketing with the others. Look connected and cool at the same time!
Very simply, combine everything you do offline to an online version! Always be thinking about how you can combine one with the other!
In the end, I challenge you to set some time aside and implement a solid online social media strategy to dramatically enhance your business, stay connected with your customers, gain knowledge, and share knowledge!
As always, I am here to help you grow your business regardless of company affiliation by sharing posts like this, other social media sites where I post, as well as offline in a free coaching meeting upon request. If you would like more information about affiliating with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, feel free to call/text or email me for a confidential appointment at Brad.Pearson@camoves.com or cell 714-782-2723.
Thanks for following my blog! Check out the video below for some fun info on the power of social media and the internet!
Brad
Video:
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July 18th Video Update – Coldwell Banker Yorba Linda
Another week has gone by and huge progress has been made! I must admit that I’ve learned a lot through this incredible process of transforming a vacant medical office building into the beginnings of a luxury Real Estate office. The facilities folks here at Coldwell Banker are just plain amazing. During the demo and construction process, I’m finding that it is inevitable that we will run into obstacles here and there with surprises that come up. What is impressive is that the team not only expects these little surprises/obstacles, but they are prepared with almost immediate remedies and solutions to every situation. Something as simple as a support beam that was discovered and immovable, goes from being an eyesore requiring a complete redesign of our lobby, to a perfectly positioned redesigned modernistic curved reception desk with 
an inviting walkway to the bullpen and conference rooms. It literally is the mindset with these pros that where there is an obstacle, it can easily become an opportunity to use creativity, collaboration, and plain teamwork to not only resolve the challenge but improve the original design/plan. And this is what happened last week! So along with the beginning of framing some offices upstairs, our lobby has been modified slightly and frankly improved from the previous plans. What I know is that while our move in date is still fluid and subject to many variables, we are making huge progress and the best people are on the job to make this office an incredible showplace once opened!
Lastly, the office and desk count is going to allow us to grow with room for over 100 great Independent Sales Associates! We will have a full compliment of staff and services to provide the support that our agents and clients deserve. The office will be staffed as follows:
-Full time office administrator
-Full time office admin assistant/receptionist
-Full time Marketing Coordinator on site to support and assist agents with their marketing, advertising, farming, design, and more!
-Weekend reception coverage Saturday and Sunday…when real estate sales happen! Few if any of our competitors are staffed on the weekends anymore, yet we believe our clients and agents deserve to have professional reception and assistance on the weekends. Our office will be the busiest in North OC on the weekends!
-Full time Transaction Coordinator
-Full time Branch Manager/coach/leader
-Full time Assistant Manager/coach/leader
-On site full time professional Escrow and Mortgage staff
-2 full time on site mentors
-On call IT support as needed
-Client Concierge Services on demand
As you can see, we are committed to a level of service and support well beyond the average real estate office in the area.
So, not only will we have an amazing facility, but we will be delivering a high touch, high service option right here in North Orange County to those who are looking to grow their business in all price ranges, but especially the high end!
Below is my newest short fun video update. Take a moment to watch it and you’ll see the progress coming along beautifully!
Don’t hesitate to reach out to me with any questions at Brad.Pearson@camoves.com or text/call 714-782-2723.
Brad
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A smooth launch into North Orange County!
Corporate Headquarters Irvine California
It is amazing what can be accomplished when a group of properly motivated, and talented people are inspired by a goal and objective and empowered by great leadership at a phenomenal, professional, and financially strong company to execute on a near perfectly thought out plan. While that was a bit of a mouthful, it pretty much sums up perfectly what has taken place here in North Orange County over the past 8 months with the launch of the new Yorba Linda Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage/Previews International office.
From the moment I joined the company, I was introduced to great people with smiles on their faces and a genuine desire to support the mission that I was tasked with out in the field. From the great people in facilities, accounting, marketing, operations, relocation, administration, and the many vendors, to the executive leadership team, everyone is clearly focused to support the mission of launching this new branch. Without exaggeration, I was made to feel like every one of these great people were doing nothing but working to execute on our Yorba Linda plan, when in reality they are all working on a multitude of other projects and office additions and expansions, acquisitions, etc. One thing I realized really quickly with this company was that everyone is focused on removing all obstacles that could slow the execution of the plan. Information was thoughtfully requested to assemble a solid move forward budget, obtain all approvals, and make solid decisions to enable everyone to simply do the job they were tasked to do. Very few meetings, zero conflict, and absolute clarity and follow through with open communication. This whole process was so impressive to me that at first I almost couldn’t believe it and was waiting for something to go wrong. When a decision was and is made, that decision has been well thought through and there’s a solid plan to execute. Well, it finally hit me, these people were the “real deal” and with over 700 company owned offices, the depth of experience in launching new offices was apparent yet humbly showcased with class and professionalism.
The core of the entire process was and is always grounded in this one simple philosophy; “Will this be the best thing for our Independent Sales Associates, attract more great Independent Sales Associates, and create an environment for them to grow and succeed?”. Everyone was clear that if the answer was yes to the above question, then we all would win and we would move forward!
New Yorba Linda Office at 21580 Yorba Linda Blvd. during construction.
All of the above is what has lead to where we are now. Our spectacular 10,000 square foot, luxury, state of the art, office is well on it’s way to completion! With 26 private offices, luxury spacious work areas, finely appointed conference rooms with the latest technology, and a jaw dropping lobby to greet your valued clients while offering them a choice of 10 different beverages from espresso to hot chocolate, any professional Realtor will be proud to show up to work here daily! Needless to say, the excitement has become contagious and the anticipation is exhilarating! Every single week that goes by, the office is transforming into what will be the premier real estate office for some of the best Realtors in North Orange County. This beautiful facility will be much more than a grand showplace of beautiful design, gorgeous decor, and modern technology, it is and will be the culmination of a positive, professional, fun, and collaborative culture with high standards that will ultimately define it. The people who embrace and seek out this culture are what will make this the greatest place to thrive and grow a real estate career in North Orange County.
Over the past several weeks I have made a couple of short fun videos showcasing the progress of the office building transformation. I am posting the links below. I am sure you will feel the energy!
If you would like information on affiliating with Coldwell Banker please do not hesitate to call/text or email me at (714) 782-2723 or Brad.Pearson@camoves.com. Aggressive transition packages available for qualified Independent Sales Associates! Make your move with zero costs! Call for details!
Brad
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